Migos
Background Migos is a rap group composed of three rappers by their well known stage names of Quavo, Offset, and Takeoff. Quavo was born Quavious Marshall, Offset as Kiari Cephus and Takeoff as Kirshnik Ball. All three members of the group are blood relatives as Quavo and Offset are cousins and Quavo is an uncle to Takeoff. Quavo’s father died when he was very young and both Takeoff and Offset lacked a father due to them abandoning the family. With that being said, they all grew up together in the same house in Lawrenceville, Georgia under the care of Quavo’s mother. Quavo took an interest in rap around eight grade and Offset and Takeoff were not far behind. Before starting their more successful career as the Migos, the trio created a different group name in 2009 called the Polo Club. Rise to Fame The group started their rap careers in the street of Atlanta where they mainly rapped for fun and recorded occasionally. As they were getting increasingly better lyrically, more people from their neighbourhoods were listening to their music. In 2012, Migos produced a single called “Bando,” which describes mostly the culture they came from. This was a major turning point in their careers as it caught on quickly in Atlanta and ended up getting the attention of a well know record producer named Zaytoven. This helped to shape their futures and resulted in the production of their first studio album, Yung Rich Nation in 2015. This album would put them on the map in the hip hop world only to have many trademark hits after. Bad and Boujee was released on October 28, 2016 and gained Migos instant fame. This was the first song released from their “Culture” album with “Culture II” following it on January 26, 2018. Since these albums have dropped, they trio has been working on solo projects along with some features with other rappers. Genre This rap group essentially started a musical genre of their own that people label as “mumble rap.” Their style is popular due to its flow that uses ad-libs to rhyme quickly and creatively. Many rappers have caught on and started producing similar music; some of them are Rich the Kid, Famous Dex, and Playboi Carti. They started out their careers with a more gangster like approach making songs about trapping and the struggles they went through everyday. Legal Trouble The Migos started out rapping about their daily lives growing up in Georgia, producing and selling drugs out of abandoned houses they called “bandos.” This lifestyle has gotten them into some significant legal trouble since their rise to fame. In 2014, the group was forced to return fire when their tour van got shot up on a highway in Miami. Not long after, Quavo and Offset were arrested on drug and illegal gun charges at Georgia Southern University. Quavo was only granted a fine for this, but due to Offset’s prior criminal record he had to spend eight months in Dekalb County Jail. This would affect his ability to tour with the group during that time period.